Football 4 Peace: Building Networks of Community Sport for Co-Existence in Ireland and Northern Ireland
This project's parent organization is Football 4 Peace International (supported by the University of Brighton; Inishowen Development Partnership; FA of Ireland; Irish FA (Northern Ireland))
It operates in Ireland
It uses Multiple sports
Entered the Sport for Conflict Resolution Award
More about Football 4 Peace: Building Networks of Community Sport for Co-Existence in Ireland and Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland has a long history of sectarian violence. While the maturing Peace Process has seen an end to the worst episodes of political and paramilitary conflict, at a society level there remains a deep reservoir of cross-community suspicion and resentment, both within Northern Ireland and between the Province and the Irish Republic. Recent events involving attacks and killings by recidivist paramilitary groups on both sides of the divide only serves to underline the importance of the continuing struggle to eradicate sectarianism within and between communities.
Football 4 Peace Ireland helps to address this issue by providing cross-community bridges for contact and association between towns and villages close to the border between the two countries. The activities and coaching methodology devised by the initiative promotes intimate interaction, allowing longer-term interpersonal relationships to develop, networks of sport development to emerge, and cross-community understanding to flourish.
F4P aims to provide and promote:
- Opportunities for social contact across community boundaries
- Mutual understanding
- Desire for and commitment to peaceful co-existence
- Sports skills and technical knowledge.